Everyone I have ever played Smash with since its original release plays it as a fun party brawler. Items on? More like ALL SMART BOMBS ALL PARTY BALLS 2X DAMAGE CUSTOM STAGE.
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SSB was designed to be a party game, but how many people actually play it as Sakurai intended?
- Thread starter ynthrepic
- Start date
Basically this. It would also be silly to assume that they don't have stats on online play to base these decisions on.
And although it is probably true that the more dedicated players may tend towards competitive modes, I'm sure they are dwarfed by the casual audience who probably drop off after the honeymoon period. It's important to remember that Smash is easily one of the best-selling competitive series out there.
Much more fun playing as a party game
Items on medium, random stages, and random characters using a number generator
Mostly play stock, sometimes time.
Would be bored out of mind playing no items, battlefield, mains all the time
Items on medium, random stages, and random characters using a number generator
Mostly play stock, sometimes time.
Would be bored out of mind playing no items, battlefield, mains all the time
Part of the appeal is that there really isn't a Nintendo fighting game with these characters in it, but we made it a thing anyway, and that thing ended up working a lot better than expected.
Beating someone in a pure game of platforming and fighting skill is a completely different but no less valid way to enjoy smash.
Opinions can change over time
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It was a mix with my friends, but even with 8 of us we would heavily skew towards playing with Only Omega map variants, no items, and 2 stock. Since it cut out the bullshit and got to see who was just better. :D
Personally when I played online on the 3DS I only played the 1v1 mode.
Personally when I played online on the 3DS I only played the 1v1 mode.
I honestly don't remember the last time my friends played with items on. We even have 2-3 stocks for our matches.
Oh I understand, should have added that to the group of people I played it with that would mean removing all the fun. Hell, the only items we sometimes removed were the boring ones. To each their own.
I am happy with the recent Sakurai interview though: from the E3 Direct with all the detailed move changes and such, I felt: wow has Smash changed that much into a serious fighting game if they spend so much time on mere details (to me)? Happy they still feel like it's a party game first and foremost.
I feel ya OP because it's easy for big fans of any pop culture to get our heads in the weeds about stuff we really like. But I think for 90%+ percent of the millions of people who buy Smash it's a fun activity with friends without any of this detail or nuance, and those people account for nearly all the sales.
Both.
The appeal of Smash is down to the number of ways that it can be played.
I enjoy showing how far I can go in matches with a main, but it is also a great experience just treating it like a typical Mario Kart. 8 player is a godsend in this aspect.
There is so much to Smash Bros., it is literally why each entry does so well critically and commercially. It is fan service done right.
The appeal of Smash is down to the number of ways that it can be played.
I enjoy showing how far I can go in matches with a main, but it is also a great experience just treating it like a typical Mario Kart. 8 player is a godsend in this aspect.
There is so much to Smash Bros., it is literally why each entry does so well critically and commercially. It is fan service done right.
My friends and I play Smash from the moment in comes out to about a year or so before a new one is coming and we only play it as a party game. Really heavily at first, and then it just goes into the rotation, where we may play it twice a week, or once a month, depending on how many other games we get into. We always play stocks, items on, any stage, but obviously some stages are shit, so we never choose them. Stages with bosses are generally ignored. Occasionally we'll turn off a specific item, because it sucks, like Gust Bellows, otherwise it's all good.
I also play Smash for hundreds of hours just solo and I've never once played with items off or in any competitive capacity.
I also play Smash for hundreds of hours just solo and I've never once played with items off or in any competitive capacity.
I mean, despite the attention the competitive scene gets, I'd say the vast majority of people play Super Smash Bros. for fun. Even people who also play competitively also play goofy matches for fun, too. I just think your impression is getting skewed by following game news. I mean, Super Smash Bros. Brawl sold like 13 million copies and Super Smash Bros. 4 sold even more than that across both the 3DS and WiiU-- I can't believe all of those people exclusively play it competitively.
Half and half is my preferred method. I dislike items in Brawl and 4 but I do like playing on 'banned' stages.
What a stupid argument OP.
You play how you like. There's the option to remove items, to play forever in Final Destination, etc. If a gamer likes to play that way, good for him; the option is there, so it was meant to play that way.
In my time with Melee (which is the best Smash), I got every trophy, played with and without items and had a blast with it. 300 hours in total, amazing game.
I played a ton against my brother, and I had a friend that was very good that had the game too. I even won a tournament once.
If the game allows you to change settings, remove stuff, then it is meant to be done.
Smash Melee was an evergreen title on GCN, it sold during the whole of the console's lifespan, and gamers didn't abandon it, on the contrary; there's a reason why gamers still play the game to this day. Obviously casual gamers have long since gotten their HD TVs and abandoned SD consoles.
You play how you like. There's the option to remove items, to play forever in Final Destination, etc. If a gamer likes to play that way, good for him; the option is there, so it was meant to play that way.
In my time with Melee (which is the best Smash), I got every trophy, played with and without items and had a blast with it. 300 hours in total, amazing game.
I played a ton against my brother, and I had a friend that was very good that had the game too. I even won a tournament once.
If the game allows you to change settings, remove stuff, then it is meant to be done.
Smash Melee was an evergreen title on GCN, it sold during the whole of the console's lifespan, and gamers didn't abandon it, on the contrary; there's a reason why gamers still play the game to this day. Obviously casual gamers have long since gotten their HD TVs and abandoned SD consoles.
I play with items on and off. It's a fun game to play casually and also fun to get a little more serious and duke it out 1v1 without items.
The great thing about it is that you can do both and have fun.
The great thing about it is that you can do both and have fun.
Party game for sure. Like to play absurd game modes we make up too like Pokeball war.
"okay Pokeballs only, we can't leave our home base, can only use Pokeballs that fall inside our base. LET'S GO"
We have one friend who is really into competitive smash so we basically either don't really play with him or play with him to humor him--as in, we play with his rules knowning we won't have fun just so he doesn't feel left out once in a while. Better that than try playing our way with him and hearing him complain about items every minute.
Yes broski, we know that items are bullshit, that's why we like them. I promise we know you're better than us at the game, no need to get upset when we win due to aforementioned bullshit.
"okay Pokeballs only, we can't leave our home base, can only use Pokeballs that fall inside our base. LET'S GO"
We have one friend who is really into competitive smash so we basically either don't really play with him or play with him to humor him--as in, we play with his rules knowning we won't have fun just so he doesn't feel left out once in a while. Better that than try playing our way with him and hearing him complain about items every minute.
Yes broski, we know that items are bullshit, that's why we like them. I promise we know you're better than us at the game, no need to get upset when we win due to aforementioned bullshit.
Same here. It was very clearly not designed to be a tournament fighter. Sure, like anything, a set of hardcore players are going to take it to a high level. But I don't think the majority of smash players are tournament goers.
I think it's more fun to watch games with items anyway, are there tournaments that utilize them in any way? Because that would be a lot more fun to watch imo.
By party, like firing it up and playing eight players and constantly rotating players? Yeah, all the time.
But items are always off and we do stock matches. I find it WAY more fun that way :)
But items are always off and we do stock matches. I find it WAY more fun that way :)
No, just like Rocket League isn't run on Rumble mode because it becomes heavily luck based and the competitive scene would last all of 1 week. Imagine flying to another state or country, only to lose to random items in bracket? it would make the game a waste of time to practice seriously if your talents could be negated at any second by RNG.
My friends and I still play Smash 4 regularly, but it's 99% with items off and only omega stages. We occasionally will turn on items or the smash ball, but there are certain items we never have on. We hate the stages with hazards, and really wish we could keep the stage layout without the other stuff on it.
OP
OP
Well, I guess my question has been answered. I guess I am indeed part of a minority. Although There does seem to be a sizable middle-ground of people who play the game in the competitive style casually.
I think gamers of specific games are always minorities within minorities, because everybody can't play every game. I think it is folly of Nintendo not to consider the potential of their franchise to make money in more ways than just out-of-the-door sales. They do seem to be acknowledging the competitive community more and more, so perhaps there is hope.
Smash could have millions of regular (as in daily, playing online) players if they did it right; I believe the game is that fun, and ultimately more accessible than any other fighting game. But it'll have to have enough technicality and balance to attract these kinds of gamers (whether casual, competitive, or professional), of which there are millions available. They're just not playing Smash yet ;)
I think gamers of specific games are always minorities within minorities, because everybody can't play every game. I think it is folly of Nintendo not to consider the potential of their franchise to make money in more ways than just out-of-the-door sales. They do seem to be acknowledging the competitive community more and more, so perhaps there is hope.
Smash could have millions of regular (as in daily, playing online) players if they did it right; I believe the game is that fun, and ultimately more accessible than any other fighting game. But it'll have to have enough technicality and balance to attract these kinds of gamers (whether casual, competitive, or professional), of which there are millions available. They're just not playing Smash yet ;)
With Brawl and a hacked Wii, you could use "infinite mushroom" cheats, which basically made their effects stack. There's giant battles, and then there's Godzilla Pikachu...
Still better than time.
But coin battles thematically require everyone to play Wario.
I believe the vast majority of people play it as a party game. Very few people (compared to the overall numbers these games sell) are about the competitive nature of the game. They play to have fun with items on and everything. I'm pretty certain Nintendo has the data to back this up as well. Melee has a very hardcore and vocal following but that game and those that love it to death are not representative of the overall community that enjoys Smash as a franchise. They never have been as much as they wish they were. That's not to say that those that enjoy Smash don't want to win their fights, don't want to win the tournaments online, etc. They do. It's just not the sole focus for them though. They don't care about frame data, wave dashing by name, tier list, etc. They simply want to have fun from the jump and be able to control their characters well and realize like any game if you want to get better you need to play more and learn the game.
I don't think you realize how small the Smash competitive community is. Best case scenario, sure you've got a million people vaguely interested in it (probably far less). Or you could design the game around being a wild party game that everyone can enjoy and attract tens of millions. You'll also be convincing people's friends who come over to play it and maybe they buy a Switch with Smash. That's definitely not going to happen with competitive Smash ever.
Smash Bros was never designed as a "Party Game". Not really.
Yes, in the sense that 4 people can play and enjoy extremely random and chaotic matches.
But no, in the sense that the underlying mechanics of Smash Bros are obviously designed with rigid principles and some philosophy of balance in mind. Even when the balance isn't particularly good.
Mario Kart and Mario Party are closer to true party games than Smash Bros. You can turn off the items in Mario Kart, but the game wasn't actually designed with much in mind to carry itself in it's absence. Smash doesn't work this way, elements of the game are actually enhanced when items are off the table.
The ONLY "core "party game" mechanic that was ever added to Smash Bros was tripping in Brawl. And everyone hated it, competitive and casual players alike.
The genius in Smash Bros' design was always its ability to be either or, depending on how you choose to play the game.
The freedom to make the game competitive or light-hearted and random without sacrificing any of its better underlying design was always a strong point in the series.
The problem with "Competitive vs. Casual" smash bros didn't even come up until the difference was forced upon everyone.
Yes, in the sense that 4 people can play and enjoy extremely random and chaotic matches.
But no, in the sense that the underlying mechanics of Smash Bros are obviously designed with rigid principles and some philosophy of balance in mind. Even when the balance isn't particularly good.
Mario Kart and Mario Party are closer to true party games than Smash Bros. You can turn off the items in Mario Kart, but the game wasn't actually designed with much in mind to carry itself in it's absence. Smash doesn't work this way, elements of the game are actually enhanced when items are off the table.
The ONLY "core "party game" mechanic that was ever added to Smash Bros was tripping in Brawl. And everyone hated it, competitive and casual players alike.
The genius in Smash Bros' design was always its ability to be either or, depending on how you choose to play the game.
The freedom to make the game competitive or light-hearted and random without sacrificing any of its better underlying design was always a strong point in the series.
The problem with "Competitive vs. Casual" smash bros didn't even come up until the difference was forced upon everyone.
A tad unfortunate it's targeted at a specific game, but the general idea still works.
EDIT: Hmm, I could have sworn this had a thing about liking the competitive aspect too. Well leaving it up anyway.
As far as I know, isn't it Sakurai himself who intended to put all those options to just play the game the way you want?
I also think "casual" is the wrong term to be used when talking about non-competitive players. You easily have people that play Smash games non-stop cause they love the game but don't care about going to local tournaments or competitions or the rules they run by. They're a hardcore player of the game and there is nothing casual about them. Someone that plays the game every weekend with friends or family is not a person I would call casual either.
Smash is a party game in the same way every other local multiplayer game by Nintendo is a party game. They're the most fun when you have a ton of people over and just chill and have fun.
It might not be purely a party game, but Sakurai has said in the past that he likes giving everyone a chance at winning which is pretty evident not just with tripping but reducing the speed and complexity and comments deriding competitive players. Items and Stage hazards are very party game, as are a lot of the wacky modes and options.
